George Gipp was one of the greatest players to ever play at Notre Dame. He was their first All-American and was known for his versatility. Gipp played halfback, quarterback, and punter for the Fighting Irish. But George Gipp was hospitalized before the final game of his senior year and died on December 14th, 1920 of pneumonia. Gipp gave a lot to Notre Dame but his coach Knute Rockne made sure he would give a little more.

In 1928 an underdog Fighting Irish squad went to Yankee Stadium to play against the undefeated Army Cadets. There was no score at halftime and Knute Rockne knew he needed something to fire up his team. He told them the tale of what George Gipp had (supposedly) said on his deathbed. He said Gipp had told him that one day when his team was down and out to tell them to win one for the Gipper. The speech was later portrayed in the 1940 movie Knute Rockne All American in which Ronald Reagan played George Gipp. The phrase is now ubiquitous in sports culture as a rallying cry for the underdog.